This invention relates to buoyancy compensators, and, more particularly, to a buoyancy compensator with interchangeable accessories which are removably attached to the buoyancy compensator.
Buoyancy compensators are commonly provided in a form similar to a life vest and include a bladder inside the vest. Buoyancy compensators are described, for example, in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,694,772, 4,561,853, 4,523,914, and 4,137,585.
A buoyancy compensator is used by a scuba diver to adjust his buoyancy during a dive. The bladder can be inflated with air to increase the diver's buoyancy and deflated when the diver wants to descend to a lower level.
Until now the color and appearance of a buoyancy compensator was fixed when it left the manufacturer. There was no opportunity to customize the buoyancy compensator to provide different colors or to provide different inidicia for tailoring the buoyancy compensator to a particular field, such as spear fishing, underwater photography, underwater ship repairing, etc.
The invention provides a buoyancy compensator with interchangeable accessories which can be used to customize the buoyancy compensator by the retailer at the point-of-purchase or by the user after purchase. One or more removable pockets or sleeves can be inserted over one or more flaps on the vest-shaped buoyancy compensator and releasably attached, for example, by hook and loop fasteners. The pockets can be provided in different colors, or the pockets can bear indicia, designs, logos, etc. for customizing the buoyancy compensator. The pockets can be removed and interchanged as desired.